This invention relates to a game apparatus designed primarily for amusement purposes but which has a wide range of utility involving mental arithmetic and a nicety of judgment in playing the game of the apparatus and for certain educational purposes.
The game apparatus is designed primarily for use with a pair of dice for numerical chance selection. The apparatus is a self-contained device having a dice receiving receptacle into which dice may be thrown by players of the game. Scoring means for opposing players is provided directly on the base structure of the apparatus.
More particularly, in the exemplary embodiment of the invention, an elongated channel shaped base structure is provided with a lower floor portion and generally parallel elongated upright flanges defining the sides of the channel. A plurality of flippers are pivotally mounted on a rod which extends longitudinally of the base generally at the top of the sides thereof. Thus, the flippers are pivotally movable generally perpendicular to the base from positions outside of the sides thereof to positions on top of the floor of the base generally centrally between the sides. Each of the flippers along one side of the base has numerical indicating means on each side thereof identical to the numerical indicating means on the opposite flipper on the other side of the base. The flippers are of sufficient length so as to cover the numerical indicating means of an opposing flipper when both flippers are disposed one on top of the other in the central position on the floor of the base. A semi-circular dice receiving receptacle is disposed at one end of the base into which dice may be thrown by players of the game. Preferably, the flippers are arranged along the sides of the base so that the numerical indicating means thereon is arranged randomly along the sides of the base, rather than seriatim. Furthermore, the mounting rods for the flippers are removable from the base so that the random arrangement of the flippers can be selectively changed. In the exemplary embodiment, the flippers along each side of the base are 12 in number and have numerical indicating means thereon from the number 1 to the number 12 to accommodate numerical combinations of at least a pair of dice.
Another feature of the invention is the provision of scoring means for opposing players of the game on the floor of the base adjacent to and along the inside of the upstanding sides and beneath the inclined flippers. The scoring means as shown herein includes a plurality of holes along the side flanges and a pair of pegs, one for each player, positionable in the holes beneath the inclined flippers. The scoring means also includes a series of numbers on the floor of the base generally parallel to and between the opposite rows of holes for the pegs.
Other objects, features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings.